Alexander Skarsgard explains why he briefly quit acting at age 13

Alexander Skarsgard has revealed the reason behind his temporary exit from acting at the age of 13.

During his appearance on Dax Shepard's Armchair Expert podcast on Monday, the Swedish star explained that he had quit acting at the age of 13 because fame had become overwhelming.

Alexander, now aged 48, first became a household name in Sweden when he starred in the 1989 TV film Hunden som log (The Dog That Smiled) at the age of 13.

"It was a 50-minute-long TV movie, but this was back in the 1980s, so we only had like two channels in Sweden, way before cable," he told Dax. "So if something was on, the whole country would watch it. I was 13 and suddenly just because of that one little thing, I was recognised."

He added, "Yeah. I became a star."

Alexander isn't the only star in his family, as he is the son of actor Stellan Skarsgard, and his brothers Bill, Gustaf and Valter are also actors.

"A Swedish star was born," the actor said. "And for someone who's longing for a father in a gray suit, driving a gray sob to the gray office, it was rough."

He continued, "I didn't like being recognised. I didn't like going to school and kids at school being like, 'I saw the movie.'"

The Legend of Tarzan star noted that at the time, his confidence was "down the drain".

"I remember being 13, 14, and if a girl showed a little bit of interest in me, I was like, 'She's just a fan of the movie. That's it,'" he said. "It just crushed me. I was like, 'This is terrible.' And I've done one 50-minute made-for-TV movie. I don't want to keep doing this."

"I retired. Threw in the towel at 13," he added.

However, Alexander came out of retirement in 2001 when he made his Hollywood debut in Zoolander.